CAIRO (AFP) — Egypt will host a summit of Arab nations on 27 February to discuss “the latest serious developments” concerning the Palestinian territories, its foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
The “emergency Arab summit” comes as Egypt has been rallying regional support against United States (US) President Donald Trump’s plan to relocate Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Egypt and Jordan while establishing US control over the coastal territory.
Sunday’s statement said the gathering was called “after extensive consultations by Egypt at the highest levels with Arab countries in recent days, including Palestine, which requested the summit, to address the latest serious developments regarding the Palestinian cause.”
On Friday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty spoke with regional partners including Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to shore up opposition to any forced displacement of Palestinians from their land.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hailed Trump’s widely criticized plan.
“I think that President Trump’s proposal is the first fresh idea in years, and it has the potential to change everything in Gaza,” Netanyahu said, adding that it represents a “correct approach” to the future of the Palestinian territory.
“All Trump is saying, ‘I want to open the gate and give them an option to relocate temporarily while we rebuild the place physically’,” Netanyahu said.